


A Tough Call

by Nicxan



Category: Five Nights at Freddy's
Genre: Gen, Th that makes it better. Right?, There's Child Murder but it doesn't happen onscreen. It's just the aftermath
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-04
Updated: 2018-06-04
Packaged: 2019-05-18 00:49:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14842425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nicxan/pseuds/Nicxan
Summary: After witnessing the aftermath of Afton's ... handiwork, Eric struggles with how to inform Jeremy of the situation at the pizzeria.





	A Tough Call

Jeremy wasn’t supposed to be there. Not now. Not tonight. Why was his car there when he drove by? _Why?_  
  
Eric stared at the rotary, motionless. Every fiber of his being screamed at him to pick up the phone and just call him. ‘ _Call the poor guard that didn’t get the memo! Help him!_ ’ He still couldn’t bring himself to move.  
  
Just thinking about his job made him feel sick. Remembering what he saw in that back room made him break out into a cold sweat. Eric curled up in his chair and let out a pathetic whimper.  
  
He couldn’t get the grisly memory out of his head.

* * *

  
_It was dark out, and the doors had been locked and barred. All the other employees went home hours ago. Most of them complained about the extra closing duties, but Eric never really minded twelve hour shifts. It gave him a chance to get the important paperwork down, make sure the cleaning crew got the job done, and just take a breather before he headed home._  
  
_He always took his time wandering around the pizzeria for the quality checks. The arcade always took the longest - there always seemed to be just an extra piece of trash, or something askew. Eric, though, had to strive for being extra-perfect. The owner of the franchise was here doing his weekly checks._  
  
_Eric clutched his clipboard tighter. William Afton definitely had a commanding presence, and the mere idea of doing something wrong made him shake. He had high standards; if something was out of place, he would make his disapproval_ very _clear. It’d mean his guaranteed promotion would be in trouble._  
  
_So, he checked everything. The stage was given a quick once-over, just to make sure it was polished and ready to go for the next day. The animatronics stared straight ahead. No stains, no wear and tear. Perfect. The tables? Set._  
  
_On and on Eric went, until he made his way towards the back room. Once he made sure the spare suits and heads were in their places, he was free to go home. Thank goodness for that. He was just under the wire before the night shift._ ‘Perfect timing!’  
  
_Eric swung the parts and service door open. The cheery smile on his face fell instantly once he got a look inside the room._  
  
_William stood there, knife in hand, blood dripping down onto the floor. The singular sound seemed unbearably loud in the absolute silence. It was soon followed by Eric’s clipboard clattering onto the floor._  
  
_Four tiny bodies were splayed out before him. There were four dead kids, the knife wounds were so prominent -- oh god, oh god. God! William Afton had killed them. He_ killed them.  _The owner had murdered those kids!_  
  
_It took a moment to process what he saw; all he could do was stand and gape, frozen to the spot. Eric bolted away from the door the second William started to turn his head._ ‘Run. Run. RUN!’ _Everything around him seemed so unreal and hazy. The once-friendly atmosphere of the pizzeria now felt sullied. He could have sworn he saw Chica turn her head slightly as he ran by, eyes pitch black._  
  
_He had to be seeing things._  
  
_Why had he not heard anything? How had he not heard anything? Eric hadn’t noticed a single scream or cry for help while he was in the office. Oh god, what was he going to do? He couldn’t get to the phone to dial the police, and there wasn’t anyone around here at 11PM, and --_  
  
_“Eric, get back here. Now!” William’s ice cold tone only made Eric run faster. The footsteps behind him were just as quick as his, but he couldn’t focus on that. All that mattered was the door and getting out._  
  
_Eric rushed to the employee entrance, nearly slamming into it with how fast he had been running. He fumbled with the doorknob for a few moments, the sweat on his palms making it that much harder to open it._  
  
“Eric!”  
  
_“Stay away from me!” Eric flung the door open and rushed out to his car. William wasn’t too far behind him, but he paused at the door. Why, Eric had no idea, but he wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth._  
  
_He felt William’s eyes on him as he got into his car and peeled out of the parking lot as quickly as humanly possible. By some miracle, he wasn’t followed home. Maybe William thought better of it. He didn’t know._  
  
_Either way, he didn’t sleep well that night._

* * *

  
By the time he snapped to attention, it was midnight.  
  
Eric’s hand shook violently as he picked up the phone. It took a few tries to dial the number to the security office. Each ring seemed to take an eternity.  
  
The question still nagged at him. Was he going to warn Jeremy about Afton? Sure, he’d call the police eventually. He had to ... right?  
  
Eric’s lower lip quivered as he forced back a sob. ‘ _I can’t._ ’  
  
He couldn’t take the risk. The calls were recorded, and he had no evidence for the police. Afton had cleaned up after himself well. On top of that, he might be stabbed. Well, killed. Eric shuddered involuntarily as different scenarios ran through his head.  
  
If nothing else, he’d lose his job. Be sued for slander. Be fired. And if he was blacklisted, who would hire him again? Half a decade of experience at a pizzeria chain didn’t add up to much, even if you were considered a manager in training.

Maybe he’d just take the night shift. Maybe it’d be safer for everyone else that way. No one else could walk in on ... _that_.  
  
The ringing finally stopped. ‘ _Oh, no._ ’ Jeremy was there. No, no, _no_. “Hello? Hello ... what -- what on Earth are you doing there? Didn’t you get the memo?” No response. Eric continued to speak, wiping at his tears as he did so.  
  
This shouldn’t be happening -- but it was. If he couldn’t report Afton, he’d just have to do what he could to keep people safe.


End file.
